What about China?

With diesel topping 120p per litre and a further 2p rise in fuel tax planned for the coming months, many companies reliant on road mobility are up in arms. Lorry drivers staged a protest this week, blocking the M4 from London to Cardiff. MP’s too have been protesting, against Alastair Darling’s proposed vehicle tax on older, inefficient models.

It seems that owning and running a car is only going to get more expensive - an additional household cost that is predicted to hit poorer families, long-distance commuters and SUV owners hardest.

But is it really such a bad thing? The government has pledged to reduce CO2 from cars by a third by 2030 and these price increases are a strong incentive for people to rethink their long-term reliance on cars and for companies to invest in energy efficient technologies.

That said, the situation is by no means an entirely positive one. Worryingly, the increase in fuel is a major contributor to a global food shortage, which is causing food price inflation to rocket.

“The food price rises are a result of record oil prices, US farmers switching out of cereals to grow biofuel crops, extreme weather and growing demand from countries India and China, the UN said yesterday.” (source).

A combination of increased oil and fuel prices paints a grim picture for the economy; now, more than ever, it’s time to rethink your habits, if only for the sake of your bank balance. Leave the car in the garage and jump on your bike for a start Got lots of heavy bags? Change of clothes? Gym kit? A laptop? No excuse - invest in some panniers and get pedaling. As for food prices - try planting some veges in your own garden - salad leaves like rocket and spinach can be expensive in those ready to wash packets from the supermarket but are surprisingly easy to grow - especially at this time of year. Buy locally produced food and be aware of what you use every week so you can avoid wastage. Easy!

Bethan

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Spurred on by the prediction that in 2020 there will be over 1.6 billion tourists, the UN have just launched a new eco travel website called ‘Green Passport’. The site aims to raise awareness about the implications of travel on global issues, focusing on climate change.

Great, but the site still assumes that the majority of people will be jetting off by plane for their break - a trend that is unsustainable given the current increase in air travel. At the moment air travel accounts for just over 3.5 percent of total CO2 emissions worldwide, which doesn’t sound that much until you consider that the IPCC estimates that by 2050 it will up to 15 percent (source). Not surprising when you consider that a family of four flying to the USA cause more emissions than their entire domestic energy use in a year!

The damage caused by flying is not just the resulting GHG emissions - the noise pollution of all those jet engines taking off is pretty horrific too. Just ask anyone who lives under the flight path at Heathrow! BA’s new flight 26 from Hong Kong is the first of 15 proposed flights legally scheduled to land before 6am. According to The Guardian’s Leo Hickman the new flight’s 5 am arrival could disturb the sleep of up to 2 million Londoners. If you think that’s bad, things are far worse in Paris where up to 150 flights per night are allowed to land at the Charles De Gaulle airport.

Far better to ditch plane travel altogether! Why bother wasting time cuing at Heathrow when you can hop on your bike and explore your local area? Sawday’s ‘Go Slow England’ is a fantastic guide to special places to visit around England with an emphasis on ‘good food, artisan producers, craftsmanship, community, landscape and history’.

If you still feel the need to cross the channel go by ferry or take a train, The man in seat 61 is a good place to start if you’re looking for advice on slow travel.

If you need a bit more inspiration to travel slow check out these blogs: a woman who went cross-country to Australia for a wedding. A round the world trip without flying and a man who cycled to china and back for the hell of it!

Bethan

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Boris Johnson was voted Mayor of London this weekend. Considering the emphasis Ken Livingston placed on the need to address London’s climate change issues Boris has a hard act to follow. So, I took a look at the environmental policies in Boris’s campaign to see how seriously the new Mayor is taking his responsibility to the planet…

So here you have it, in Boris’s own words…

Oh dear… the phrase ‘polishing mud’ comes to mind; Boris seems unprepared to tackle the root of the issue - cutting pollution and CO2 emissions at source doesn’t appear on the agenda. In fact he’s even championing the return of the routemaster! Even though new ‘clean fuel fleet’ is proposed the move is still little more than a token gesture that panders to a nostalgic whim - at huge expense to tax payers. The bendy buses may not be popular but they are more economical than predecessors.

Boris is also ‘reforming’ the congestion charge - and will not be imposing Ken’s proposed £25 levy - another step back in the fight to make London greener. Capping the congestion charge or even reducing it may make all those SUV driving yummy mummies in west London happy but what about all the residents who cycle to work? More cars on the road increase pollution and make the roads more dangerous. By reforming the charge he is actively encouraging people to leave their bike at home…

As for Boris’s pledge to ban bottled water… saving on plastic is a good idea — but most offices have water dispensers don’t they? Considering that one of the biggest climate concerns in future is global water shortage, surely effort is best directed at reducing the pollution reaching our already contaminated water and finding ways to conserve supplies?

Bethan

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Welcome to the all about what about china Blog…

What about China? is the latest in Alastair Sawday’s Fragile Earth series, it answers all those awkward questions about climate change that you’re afraid to ask and lays to rest the speculations and misconceptions that are bandied around amongst even the most well meaning individuals.

The book is laid out in a series of questions with jargon-free answers provided by a panel of experts from The Soil Association, WasteWatch, Ecover, The Centre for Alternative Technology, James Bruges (author of the Little and Big Earth Book) and Alastair Sawdays.

Topics covered include climate, recycling, energy, travel and food and this blog is your chance to ask even more questions, discuss any issues raised in the book, keep abreast of relevant current related news articles and lots more…

I’m looking forward to hearing your questions and finding out the answers…

Bethan
  
Ask a climate change question…